The Dodgers brought back lefty Clayton Kershaw to the mound on Saturday with hopes it would rejuvenate a team that won just four of its last 11 games. However, another poor offensive showing resulted in a 3-2 loss for Los Angeles, securing the series win for San Francisco with a possibility of sweeping on Sunday.
Even if the Dodgers would have put up some runs for Kershaw, the veteran still wouldn’t have qualified for the win because he threw just four full innings.
Over those four frames, Kershaw threw 71 pitches, 43 for strikes. He allowed two earned runs on three hits and two walks while striking out four.
The big blow for the Giants came in their two-run second inning when Thairo Estrada hit a solo homer into the left field bleachers.
The Dodgers threatened multiple times in the game — and it showed in the box score — as the team out-hit San Francisco 13-5. However, Los Angeles left the bases loaded to end an inning on two occasions.
The Dodgers finally got on the board in the eighth inning when Cody Bellinger hit a ground-rule double to left-center field, scoring Will Smith with one out. Chris Taylor followed with a walk to juice the bases, but Gavin Lux and Mookie Betts struck out consecutively to end the inning.
In the seventh inning, Taylor led off with a walk, followed by singles from Lux and Betts to load the bases with nobody out. Freddie Freeman then struck out, and Trea Turner grounded into a double play to end the threat.
Freeman hit a solo home run to right-center with nobody out in the top of the ninth to cut the lead to one. T. Turner followed with a single, but the rally ended with a Max Muncy strikeout, a Smith fielder’s choice and a Bellinger ground out.
A short stint for Craig Kimbrel on the paternity list did not do anything to alleviate his struggles. The reliever started fresh for the Dodgers in the bottom of the eighth, quickly allowing a single to Joc Pederson, then surrendering back-to-back walks to Wilmer Flores and Estrada.
Kimbrel’s second wild pitch of the night allowed Pederson to score, stretching the San Francisco lead back to two. Kimbrel recorded one out before being replaced by right-hander Evan Philips, who closed out the frame.
Camilo Doval recorded the official win for the Giants, improving his record to 2-2. Kershaw took the loss, falling to 4-1. Lefty Jose Alvarez notched his first save of the year.
In other news, the team sent righty starter Walker Buehler to the injured list with a right forearm strain. He was replaced on the roster by 26-year-old swingman Michael Grove.
The Dodgers will give the ball to Julio Urias in Sunday’s finale with hopes of salvaging at least one game from the series.
No outs bases loaded with Freeman & T Turner up and they didn’t manage to score a run. That was the game along with the horrible lack of control for Kimbrel. Is there something wrong with him? Two wild pitches?? Jeez!!
Yeah, Kimbrel. You’ve looked at his stats? He’s pitched only 18 innings so statistics aren’t stabilized yet. But from what’s there this season, he looks like a pitcher in transition from a flamerthrower to a worm killer. %K is near a career low except for early injury year in Chicago. LD% = 11 and GB% = 56. That’s extreme for him. Were his wild pitches in the dirt? ERA estimators look like he’s been unlucky. We need more innings to make a clear decision.
A closer needs control. I agree his stint with the White Sox was apparently not an anomaly unfortunately.
This game’s sole purpose on the schedule was to teach the Dodgers humility.
It did its job.
Everyone is teaching us humility these days. We aren’t hitting and lose, when we are hitting we lose.
The top hitters really blew this one. Freeman chases ball four which would have scored a run in 7th. If he walks than Turner’s DP ball would score the runner on third. Then in 8th same thing. Bases loaded and both Lux and Betts chase would would be run producing walks. That’s at least 4 Runs! And maybe more would have followed.